


The Path Foretold

by silveryink



Category: His Dark Materials (TV)
Genre: Don't copy to another site, Episode: s01e06 The Daemon Cages, Father-Daughter Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-11
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:40:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22667152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silveryink/pseuds/silveryink
Summary: Two sides of a conversation overheard on a balloon.
Relationships: Lyra Belacqua & Lee Scoresby, Serafina Pekkala & Lee Scoresby
Comments: 6
Kudos: 84
Collections: Genuary 2021





	1. Lyra

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, everyone! This little story was based off of a Tumblr post, and suprisingly ended up fluffier than I thought.  
> Hope you all enjoy!

Lyra curled in on herself as she sank next to Iorek’s form. The panserbjørne didn’t protest the contact, didn’t say anything or even react when she tugged Roger closer to her. The two of them had waved a farewell to the gyptians as the balloon rose into the Arctic sky, but exhaustion had crept upon them swiftly. Roger had gone out like a candle flame against a harsh gust of wind. Lyra felt more like a flickering anbaric lamp, the one Lee was tapping in hopes of getting it to work. Adrenaline coursed through her one moment, and sleep the next.

She must have given into the pull of slumber at some point, for she only remembered Pan twisting into the pocket of her coat, sticking close to her heart, before she was roused by the weighted feeling of blankets across her shoulders. She barely stirred, not wanting to disturb the peace in the balloon, but quickly arrived at the conclusion that it must have been Lee Scoresby who covered her with his furs. She drew them closer around her, seeking out their warmth and settling back comfortably against Iorek.

She hadn’t thought the aeronaut was fond of her. That would have been ridiculous, of course – the man barely knew her, and she him. And yet, this gesture seemed less of the generic kindness variety and more personal, somehow. She wasn’t sure how she knew it, but it was as clear to her as the meanings of the symbols on the alethiometer.

She heard Lee’s footsteps around the balloon, soft and careful, and the rustle of fabric. She thought she smelled pine, but didn’t move, and continued to feign sleep, although she was entirely alert now. She couldn’t help but let her thoughts drift to the way he’d taken her aside to let the Costas grieve privately, his careful opinion about the Oblation Board’s treatment of the children and their dæmons, how he’d offered his tent and company to Lyra without hesitation, along with his services to the gyptians.

Pan peeked out from under the furs, white ermine coat blending seamlessly with the borrowed material. An unfamiliar voice said, “I thought you might need a tow.”

Lyra wondered who this person was, but Lee’s response erased all doubts. So _this_ was the queen of the witch-clan that Dr. Lanselius had told them about, the one who’d stolen Farder Coram’s heart; this was Serafina Pekkala.

“Always good to see you in the skies, Mr. Scoresby,” she said. “Your dæmon has been summoning me.”

This piqued Lyra’s interest. Hester could summon a witch?

“Well, it’s been a while since we’ve seen you,” the dæmon spoke up. Lyra was amazed. It was normally humans who would keep a conversation, while the dæmons remained at their side or conversed among themselves. It was rare for one to address another’s dæmon directly – the level of familiarity this implied between them was startling.

“That was quite a performance earlier,” Lee continued, sounding amused and impressed.”

“Thank you.”

“Question: what can we expect going forward, in the sense of mayhem and chaos?”

“There may be fighting,” was the prompt response, “but you’ve fought before.”

“And gladly. But as the situation grows more complicated, so… _my_ situation grows more… complicated.”

“The child is destined to be important, to create and resolve conflict.” Lyra wondered what the witch-queen meant by this. It seemed highly unlikely that a prophecy spoke about _her_ , and yet she’d overheard the Consul say something along those lines at Trollesund.

She remained silent, listening attentively.

“So this is about her?”

“She matters more than she can ever know,” Serafina Pekkala said. “The fate of more than this world depends on her.”

Lyra’s heart skipped a beat. So she _had_ been right about the city in the Aurora being from another world!

“Well, I had a contract with the gyptians over what was accomplished at Bolvangar. This seems like a whole new thing,” Lee said, and Lyra’s heart sank at the words. She had thought Lee was a good man for helping the gyptians so readily, but was dismayed that he’d done it for payment, for personal gain. Then again, he _had_ told them that such demands were within the limits of his profession as an ‘aeronaut for hire’.

She missed Lee’s next words amidst her racing thoughts, but heard Serafina say, “She will need you, Lee.”

“You know, a man should have a choice whether to take up arms or not.”

Serafina sounded more amused and gleeful as she added, “And you need her.”

A few moments of silence matched the way her mind screeched to a halt at the words. Whatever did that _mean_?

“That is _not_ how I expected the conversation to go,” Lee said, and Lyra wholeheartedly agreed. She was rather confused by the turn it had taken as well.

“Is it not?” The queen sounded more playful now, thoroughly amused at Lee’s reaction.

“Nah, I was hopin’ you’d find a way of chucking me some danger money, instead you _blindsided_ me with –” he sighed, and she had to strain to hear what he said next – “with love.”

“Good,” Serafina said, almost as soft as Lee had been at the end of his small tirade. “The polar star will guide you to Asriel,” she said brusquely, as though the last exchange had never happened – but it had, and Lyra was left reeling at this declaration that hadn’t been meant for years, and so was _so confused_ -

“The wind is strong, you’re a capable navigator,” Serafina concluded.

“So it’s me-” he cut himself off once more and started over, “She’s responsible for the fate of everything, and _I’m_ responsible for – for her?”

Lyra wasn’t sure whether he sounded incredulous or wondrous. She also wasn’t sure about how she felt right now. Nobody had ever said anything about loving her, not even Roger. Her best friend showed it in other ways, but this was the first time she’d ever heard such an admission. Lyra was grateful for the cover of the furs, though she couldn’t stop herself from twisting and sniffling slightly.

The amount of emotions coursing through her was bordering on overwhelming, and she hoped that the pair of adults would chalk her movement up to a restless sleep. Though she couldn’t help but admit, to some corner of herself, that she was relieved and really didn’t mind at all, that it wouldn’t at all be that bad to have Lee as her guardian – however temporary it may be.

“The world is in your hands, Mr. Scoresby, and I am delighted it is.”

The smell of pine vanished, and Lyra opened her eyes slightly, for the fraction of a second so that she wouldn’t be caught, catching a glance of Lee’s gobsmacked expression.

“Impressive,” Hester said.

“Yup.” There was a breathless quality to his voice, though Lyra couldn’t imagine why. Perhaps it was the altitude? The cool breeze sifting through the balloon did indicate that a flap of tarp was undone.

“And they want _you_ on their team?”

Lyra’s grin grew wider. The feeling from earlier came together now. She loved Iorek, of course, though she’d only known him for a few days; and she was absolutely certain she loved Lee. For all her luck with guardians, she knew with an absolute certainty that she could trust Lee. If nothing else had led her to this conclusion, it was the playful, teasing banter between him and his dæmon that so resembled hers and Pan’s.

“Shut up, Hester,” he countered, with no heat in his tone, and she allowed a tiny smile to break her façade. She thought back to Serafina Pekkala’s words, and pretended to wake only now. He met her gaze with a steady smile, and as she returned it with equal earnestness, she realised that the queen was right; the world could be entrusted to Lee and would indeed be better for it.


	2. Lee

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lee's POV of the conversation.  
> An unexpected addition, but I'm not turning down writing more dad/daughter fluff. Hope you all enjoy!

Lee carefully maneuvered the controls of his beloved balloon so that the wind caught the tough canvas and guided it in the direction of Svalbard and, apparently, Lord Asriel Belacuqa. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the man, but he didn’t voice his doubts to the other occupants of the balloon. From what Lyra had told him and what he’d inferred, Asriel apparently had extremely important and conveniently heretical research to conduct that possibly involved the true nature of Dust. Lyra believed that he required the alethiometer to continue his experiments, and Lee was only this cautious in flight so that she would reach her destination safely.

He hopped down from the railing and swung his arm a bit – hanging up the covers was never pleasant work, and that had been before he’d faced off Pierre McConville and his cronies. It was mostly his fault that the wound hadn’t healed right; he could never resist pulling himself up in between the arches of the balloon to gaze at the view. Even now, he leaned across the opening he’d left to watch the sun dip under the horizon. The harsh wind stung, but that didn’t stop him from relishing the finer aspects of his admittedly isolated lifestyle. This was the largest group to set foot inside his balloon in all the while he’d owned it.

Lyra joined him and stood at his side in silence, watching the sunset with him. He couldn’t help but smirk slightly at the expression of wonder she bore, but that wasn’t surprising at all. One could never get used to a view like this. Standing here, in the fading light, with a child he’d grown unexpectedly fond of, he felt nothing but peace. The sky darkened around them, almost too soon, and Lee caught Lyra stifling a yawn.

“Lyra, honey, you should probably try to get some rest. We’ve got a long journey ahead of us.”

He thought for a minute that the little girl would protest, but she simply nodded and curled up beside her friend – Roger – against Iorek’s warmth. The great bear caught his gaze with a strange glint in his eye, but he simply shut his eyes without saying anything. Of course, that was when Lee realised what he’d said and found himself sighing.

“What have I become,” he muttered, pulling out some spare furs from his storage cabinet (which, at this point, was no more than a floorboard panel).

If he were completely honest with himself, he had to admit that both he and Iorek had gotten attached to Lyra. It was unexpected to see the old bear so protective of someone – sure, Iorek had helped him during that brawl in Navy Odense, and the Tunguska Campaign besides, even hauling him to safety out of the snow when he’d taken a spear to his side, but it had all been well after Lee had proved his trustworthiness to his friend. It was equally as disorienting that he’d started having a sort of instinct about himself, to protect the kid at all costs. He was hesitant to call them paternal. They hardly knew each other.

Still, ever since she’d brought poor Billy Costa back to the gyptian camp, since he’d offered her his company, counsel and tent without hesitation, the affection he felt for her was growing increasingly harder to ignore. Besides the obvious problem, the girl already _had_ a father – one she admired, despite any misgivings he had regarding Asriel’s capability to care for his child, or even look past whatever experiment he was conducting.

“Are you going to stand there all day with those furs?”

“It’s night and you know it,” Lee replied automatically, shaking them out and draping them over the children. If she saw him tucking Lyra’s blanket securely around her like a doting parent, Hester didn’t comment on it. Fortunately, the jump seat Hester was on already had a fur blanket on it, so he didn’t have to flounder for another or remove his outer coat.

The anbaric lamp strung to the central pole flickered. Lee frowned and tapped it a few times so that it stopped and stayed lit.

“I thought you might need a tow,” said a voice from the front of the balloon, and Lee was so focused on the need to buy a better bulb that he nearly missed it.

“Good to see you, Miss Pekkala,” he said amicably. He’d first met the witch years ago, and they had kept up some sporadic contact between then and now.

“Always good to see you in the skies, Mr. Scoresby.” Alas, despite their familiarity, there had always been a formal undercurrent to the way they addressed each other.

“Your dæmon has been summoning me,” Serafina Pekkala added, nodding at Hester.

“Well, it’s been a while since we’ve seen you.” It was rare, Lee knew, for a dæmon to directly address another human, and those instances usually meant a certain level of amicability between both parties. The only exceptions to the rule were the dæmons of witches, like Kaisa and others, for they could travel great distances and deliver messages or gather information besides.

“That was quite a performance earlier,” Lee continued smoothly.

“Thank you.”

“Question: what can we expect going forward, in the sense of mayhem and chaos?”

“There may be fighting,” she said immediately, “but you’ve fought before.”

“And gladly.” That wasn’t strictly true, Lee had tried to run from every fight he’d been in. He detested violence, but would never regret standing up for something he believed in. “But as the situation grows more complicated, so… _my_ situation grows more… complicated.”

“The child is destined to be important, to create and resolve conflict.” Lee was momentarily thankful that Serafina Pekkala hadn’t pointed out the lame ending as the cheap excuse it was. Then again, there was no need to address it when she’d already given her response – she knew as well as he did that this was all posturing while he scoped out the amount of danger Lyra could be in.

“So this is about her?”

“She matters more than she can ever know,” Serafina Pekkala said, and Lee rubbed his eyes. “The fate of more than this world depends on her.”

Now, he was no experimental theologian, but the implications of that statement alone sent him reeling. “Well, I had a contract with the gyptians over what was accomplished at Bolvangar. This seems like a whole new thing.”

Serafina shook her head, brushing away the obviously nominal protests. While money was certainly going to be an issue, they knew that that wasn’t his greatest worry.

“She will need you, Lee.” 

Lee let out a slightly hysterical laugh. He was _far_ from equipped to deal with something of such massive proportions. “You know, a man should have a choice whether to take up arms or not.”

Serafina sounded more amused and gleeful as she added, “And you need her.”

All the breath rushed out of him, and Lee felt like he could strangle fate. This was the very topic he’d been trying to avoid, and yet. “That is _not_ how I expected the conversation to go.”

It was truly impressive that his voice was steady as he said this. He looked at Hester, who didn’t so much as react. If he asked her why, later, she’d no doubt tell him it was “ _about damn time you faced your emotions, Lee._ ”

“Is it not?” Were the two of them _conspiring_ against him?

“Nah, I was hopin’ you’d find a way of chucking me some danger money.” Lee noticed that, along with his accent thickening, he was also speaking faster than he normally would have. _Damn emotions_. “Instead you _blindsided_ me with – with _love_.”

“Good,” Serafina said, smirking triumphantly when Lee turned back instinctively to look at Lyra. The little girl was shifting slightly in her sleep, but settled back against Iorek once more.

“The polar star will guide you to Asriel,” she said brusquely. “The wind is strong, you’re a capable navigator.”

And because his mind was still two steps behind the her in this very strange conversation, “So it’s me – she’s responsible for the fate of everything, and _I’m_ responsible for – for her?”

Serafina smiled, not unkindly, and said, as if that made any more sense, “The world is in your hands, Mr. Scoresby, and I am delighted it is.”

Then she slid off the railing and glided into the night, pine-cloud branch held before her. Lee sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Oh, well. He couldn’t help loving Lyra, but he would leave the choice up to her concerning whether she’d want him to be more than a temporary guardian. The prospect of this was not entirely appealing, but he’d take caring for Lyra over not being involved in her life.

“Impressive,” Hester said, and Lee wasn’t sure if she meant Serafina Pekkala’s revelation or how quickly Lee had processed his confused emotions.

“Yup.”

“And they want _you_ on their team?”

He glanced down at Hester gratefully. “Shut up, Hester,” he said, with no heat in his tone. He rubbed the patch of fur between her ears, which twitched in response. He laughed softly and turned to Lyra, who stirred and blinked the sleepiness from her eyes.

And if nothing else could have convinced him that being a paternal figure wasn’t as foreign to him as it seemed, it was the rush of happiness he felt at Lyra’s hesitant smile, and the conviction that protecting Lyra Belacqua was going to be the easiest job he’d been roped into.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, a few things:  
> Apparently the basket of Lee’s balloon is called a gondola, but I’ve elected to call it the basket to avoid the impression of a slim Venetian boat about the canals.  
> Also, Lee canonically calls Lyra honey in The Amber Spyglass so this is my little homage to that scene.


End file.
